The Brookhaven leader. [volume] (Brookhaven, Miss.) 1883-1891, 1887-12-22


ventions Of our own day, but the games
which come down with the sportfulness
of all the past ages-chess and charades
and tableaux and -battledore and calls
themes and lawn tennis, and all those
amusements which the young people Of
oar homes know 30 well how to contrive.
Then there win be the parlor socialities-
groups of people assembled in your homes,
with wit and mimicry and joviality, fill.
ing the room with Joy from the door to
the mantel, and from the carpet to the
ceiling. Oh, is there any exhilaration
like score of genial souls in one room.
each one adding contribution of his
own individual merriment to the aggre-
cation of general hilarity2
Suppose you want to 60 abroad in the
city, then you will find the panorama and
the art gallery and exquisite collections
of pictures. You will find the Metropoli-
tan museum and the Historical society
rooms full of rare curiosities and scores
Of places which can stand plainly the test
of what is right and wrong in amuse-
me nts. You will find the lecturipg hall.
Which has been honored by the names Of
Agassiz in natural history, Doremus in
chemistry, Boynton in geology, Mitchell
in astronomy. John B. Cough in moral
reform, and scores and hundreds of men
who have poured their wit and genius and
ingenuity through that particular channel
upon the hearts and consciences and imag-
nations of men, setting this country fifty
years farther in advance than it would
have been without the lecture platform.
rejoice in the popularization of out
door sports. hail the croquet ground
and the fisherman's rod and the sports.
mans gun. In our cities life is SO un-
healthy and unnatural that when the
census taker represents city as having
100000 inhabitants, there are only
200 600, since it takes at least two men
to amount to one man, so depicting and
snnerving and exhausting is this metro
politan life. We want more fresh air,
more sunlight, more of the abandon OF
field sports. / cry out for it in behalf of
the church of God as well as in behalf of
secular interests. / wish that this win
ter our ponds and our rivers and ouI
Capitoline grounds might be oil aquake
with the heel and the shout Of the swift
skater. / wish that when the warm
weather comes the graceful oar might
resonant with boatman's song, the bright
PROV splitting the crystalline billow. We
shall have the smooth and grassy lawn,
and we will call out people of all occu-
pations and professions, and ask them to
join in the ball players sport. You will
come back from these outdoor exercises
and recreGtions with strength in your
arm, and color in Your check, and flash
in yoar eye, and courage in your heart.
In this great battle that is opening
against the kingdom of darkness we
want not only consecrated soul, but
strong arm and stout lungs and mighty
muscle. / bless God that there are SO
many recreations that have not on them
any taint of iniquity; recreations in which
we may engage for the strengthening of
tho body, for the clearing of the intellect,
for the illumination of the soul,
There is still another form of recreation
which l commend to you, and that is the
pleasure of doing good. / have seen
young men, weak and cross and sour and
repelling in their disposition, who by one
heavenly touch have Weakened up and be-
come blessed and buoyant, the ground
under their feet and the sky over their
heads breaking forth into music. "Ol,
says some young man in the house today,
II should like that recreation above all
others, but have not the means.' My
dear brother, let us take an account of
stock this morning. You have n large
estate, if you only realize it. Two hands.
Two feet You will have, perhaps, dur
ing the next year at least $40 for chari-
table contribution. You will have $500
cheerful looks, if you want to employ
them. You will have 5000 pleasant
words, if you want to speak them. Now
what an amount that is to start with!
You go out tomorrow morning, and
you see q case Of real destitution by the
wayside. You give him two cents. The
blind man hears the pennies rattle in his
hat, and he says: Thank you, sir; God
bless YOU" You pass down the street,
trying to look Indifferent; but you feel
from the very depth of your. soul a pro-
found satisfaction that you made that
man happy. You go on still farther, and
find poor boy with wheelbarrow, try
ing to get it up on the curbstone. He
fails in the attempt. You say: "Stand
back, my lad; let me try" You push it
up on the curbstone for him and pass on.
He wonders who that well dressed man
was that helped him. You did kind
ness to the boy, but you did great joy
to your own soul. You will not get over
it all the week.
On the street tomorrow morning you
will see a sick man passing along. 'Ah, !"
you say, "what can / do to make this
man happy? He certainly does not want
money; he is not poor, but he Is sick.
Give him one of those $500 cheerful
looks that you have garnered up for the
whole year. Look joy and hopefulness
into his soul. 1t will thrill him through,
and there will be reaction upon your
own soul. Going little farther on you
will come to the store of friend who is
embarrassed in business matters. You
will go in and say, What fine store
YOU havel l think business will brighten
up and you will have more custom after
while l think there is coming great
prosperity to the whole country.
Good morning" You pass out. You have
helped that young man and you have
helped yourself. And that night you so
home; you sit by the fire, you talk n
little, you sing little, you laugh
little; you say: Il really don't
know what is the matter with me.
never felt so splendidly in my
life." / will tell what is the matter
with you. YCu spent only two cents out
of tho SO; you have contributed'one out
of 1850 cheerful looks; you have given
ten, fifteen or twenty Of the 5000 pleas
. ant words you are going to speak daring
tha xnao.. x,o,, hara xxy,tb roa,r own h.olS